The white garden in spring

Sounds a bit pompous, calling it a white garden, but a stretch of the new bed which reaches out along the boundary fence towards the Sequoias, has been designed with a selection of white flowered plants.

Magnolia stellata - a moving in present from English friends

Starting at the end of the herb patch outside the kitchen window with an Iris germanica variety called Frost and Flame, the bed features a white Lagerstroemia in a sunny spot and Philadelphus and white Lilac on a little more shade against the fence.

Clematis armandii against the wall in Chabris

At this time the evergreen Clematis armandii is providing early flower, with a Magnolia stellata given to us by English friends, also in bloom and showing a touch of pink in bud. Nearby are Narcissus of a cream-white colour with Lilies planted amongst them to continue the effect when the Daffs have finished.

A large shrub of Viburnum burkwoodii is about to perform and I am eagerly anticipating the sweetly scented flowers. Underneath, a white Wood Violet, recently discovered in the lawn, has been transplanted to this more appropriate spot. Another recent addition bears the same name as the Viburnum, is also sweetly scented, with evergreen leaves and white flowers: Osmanthus burkwoodii.

Both these plants were named after Arthur Burkwood who, with his brother Albert, started the Parkwood Nursery in Kingston Upon Thames, Surrey, England. Other plants containing this name include: Cytisus scoparius ‘Burkwoodii’, Daphne x burkwoodii ‘Carol Mackie’, Osmarea burkwoodii, and Cytisus scoparius ‘Burkwoodii’

White Narcissus - not all Daffs are yellow

We will continue to add white flowered plants to the small selection in this border to ensure that we have something in flower there throughout the year. I have recently been expanding the bed both to create more space for future planting and to produce a much more interesting shape than we had at first. It has also had the effect of improving the growing conditions by providing a range of habitats. The Lagerstroemia, for instance, is far happier now that I have been able to move it out into a spot with more direct sun.

First Cuckoo

For the last six months we have been living in our rental gite, which we created a couple of years ago from a derelict garage, while the main house is slowly, painfully slowly, renovated. 

Its lovely, but after all this time we would like to stop living next to a building site and get our lives back. To cheer the place up we have been placing  colourful flowering plants near the door, including flowering shrubs in a terracotta pot.

It is rather nice to see a plant close-up several times a day: you learn to appreciate its sublteties and discover aspects of it you may not have noticed before. I have tried to select scented plants where possible and my seasonal selection started with Hamamelis Arnold Promise, an American variety of Witch Hazel I had not grown before. This has now been planted in the garden, as has the plant that replaced it: Daphne mezereum.

The shrub that is currently greeting us as we return to the gite is Osmanthus burkwoodii, another strongly scented plant, this time with white flowers and evergreen foliage.

Our pot full of Osmanthus by the door

 

The season is moving on a pace, with Magnolias and the first of the fruit trees in flower: Peaches, Pears and Cherries.

Oh, and I heard the first Cuckoo today!